The Armstrong Clan Society 

Dedicated to the Armstrongs, Crosiers, Fairbairns, Grosiers, Nixons and those interested in these surnames

The Armstrong Clan Society offers you One Hundred Thousand Welcomes!

The Armstrong Clan Society has been organized to:

1) Seek friendship and unity among Armstrongs and associated families.

2)  Provide for the preservation of Armstrong artifacts unique to the family and to maintain a library.

 3) Serve as a genealogical and historical recorder of the membership,

 4) Provide quarterly news, Armstrong history and genealogy via The Armstrong Chronicles,

 5) Establish geographic membership representation.

Membership

All Armstrongs, Croziers, Fairbairns, Groziers and Nixons, regardless of spelling, and their descendants, are eligible for full membership in The Society. All others interested in furthering the goals of The Society may become associate members. In the United States and Canada, dues are $25 per year, including two adults and all minor children. In all other countries dues are $35 per year, payable in US funds.

You can click here to download a membership application. Any questions? Email Peter Armstrong at parmstrong2@sc.rr.com Summerville, SC 29485

George Armstrong’s Oregon Gold Mine

Extracted from The Hidden Treasure article by Gertrude O'Rorke in the Blue Mountain Eagle,  John Day Oregon,  December 17, 1964. Submitted by Marsha Long with edits by the Bill Armstrong.

    From over the plains came the covered wagon teams to Oregon. ­Men and their families, looking for new homes and riches, looking for gold.  Some settled along the middle fork of the John Day river. Some settled along a creek of clear running water, which they named Elk Creek. This beautiful little creek was situated between two mountain ridges, in a narrow canyon, from where it rippled its way over the rocks and down to the middle fork of the John Day River.              

   Because it was Indian country, the settlers congregated in camps for their mutual protection. One such camp, in the canyon along the edges of Elk Creek, they named Susanville. It did not take long for the settlers to find gold along Elk Creek, where the soil was fabulously rich in course nuggets.

 Before long, word of the find reached other camps, and more men rushed to Susanville to locate claims and start digging for gold. The gold rush was on, and soon 500 miners were digging for gold. 

 One Mr. Haskell, who had already made a lot of money from gold mining, took out $2,000,000, in his last year working the area. One last task while working the area, was that he had his men dig a big pit with their hydraulic nozzles. When it was finished, Mr. Haskell and his foreman, John Pierson, went to the pit to pick up any gold that was ex­posed. Just as he reached the bot­tom and Pierson was ready to enter the pit, he looked up the hill and saw a big slide starting. John yelled to Haskell to jump, he did but, the whole hill was coming down. Haskell scrambled out and down came big trees, rocks and dirt, filling and covering the pit. Haskell soon left the area and moved to Baker, and later to California.

   In a little camp just below Susanville, George Raider, or Rehder, (ed. - probably Ritter, a town so named NW of Susanville - see map below) took out $35,000 (worth of gold- ed) after all expenses were paid. A Mr. Ray, located some ground on the little creek he named "Ray Creek". He hired a crew who took out $10,000 to $l1,000 of gold per year for 10 years.

When Buck Gulch was located, $14,000 was taken out in one year and $5,000 in each of the next two years. In 1913, George Armstrong and Dick Stewart were mining in Buck Gulch. Both were elderly and had chores to do at home, but. they put in as much time as they could at their mine. The work was discouraging, but they kept their hope of striking it rich. On the morning of June 19 (1913 assumed) they decided to wash out a little island in the middle of the creek running through their claim. After the soil was mostly washed away, Stewart noticed a rusty looking object shaped like a baby's shoe. His heart pumped hard when he realized that it was gold. "We've struck it rich," he shouted to his partner. "'George, I've found a nugget as big as your fish." Joyously, the two men climbed on their horses and headed for home.

The next day, armed with pistol and rifle, they headed for Baker City with their find. In Baker City the assayer confirmed their hopes. The nugget was solid gold and weighed 80.4 ounces - worth $l,415 at the going price or $17 per ounce. (Almost $75,000 at today’s gold prices.) The nugget was never marketed, and today (1964) it is on display in a Baker bank where many people still admire it. It is the largest pure gold nugget ever found, although some larger nuggets which contain quartz have been located.  

          OK -  So where in Oregon is Susanville???  Seems to be very remote in a lovely mountainous area.

                                                                               Rev Jul 12, 2008

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